Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Jewelry...again

Got this email from a friend "I went to the Georgetown Farmers/Flea Market today, then went on to visit a couple of very cool home decor/retro funk stores that also operate there. Susan Wheeler Home (5515 Airport Way S., Seattle - 360-402-5080) is a place you MUST go, given your love of retro rhinestone bling. She has more colors and range of stock than I've ever seen in one place, albeit I'm no expert."

Went there but nothing this time. But just around the corner is Fruit Cocktail Collectibles, (1210 South Bailey Street, Seattle (206) 669-0540) and look at the great bracelet that just had to come home with me!

Friday, August 27, 2010

Road Trip, continued

Three great shops and I'm at my limit! Managed to spend money everywhere. I have no idea where I'm going to put it, guess I'll have to make more quilts, YEA!









Parkland Parrish Quilt Shop
12152 Pacific Avenue South
Tacoma, WA 98444-5125
(253) 531-4309
Quilting supplies of all kinds in a historic and beautiful church.





The Wild Rose Quilt Shop
125 Van Scoyoc Ave. SW
Orting, WA 98360
The Wild Rose is a nicely equipped quilt shop with a wonderful retreat center upstairs.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Road Trip


A nice sunny Saturday, and a nice long road trip with a friend...perfection!
Gee Gee's Quilting
601 Yelm Ave West
Yelm WA 98597
Been in business for 32 years, family owned and operated, great fabric selection, quilting supplies, gifts, yarn and crafts.









Oh, the stripes!

Friday, August 20, 2010

Things you should know about thread

1. Cotton is the only 100% natural fiber thread made especially for sewing machines. It can be a bit linty, so clean your machine frequently when using it.
What to look for: extra long staple thread that is very smooth with-out bumps on the spool.

2. Rayon thread has a high sheen, and is both soft and heat resistant. Unfortunately, it’s not colorfast and neither as strong nor as durable as polyester.
What it does: 30 wt. is intended to show and 40wt. has a subtle sheen.

3. Metallic: There is a huge range of quality of metallic threads.
Best when: used with a polyester bobbin thread, a Metallic needle and a lower than normal bobbin tension.

4. Polyester: is strong, durable and is available in a broad range of colors. Sizes range from very thin to very thick.
Advantages: strong, durable and color fast, with either a matte or a sheen finish. Most are virtually lint free.

5. Silk: Great thread!
What to look for: 100% pure filament silk.

6. Monofilament: Use only polyester monofilament. It will not yellow over time or melt easily.
What to look for: comes in clear and smoke colored.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

I'll be teaching two great classes at Quiltworks in Bellevue WA

For all of you who have requested workshops closer to home:

Bead Can
dy Quilts Oct 9 - 10:30-2:30
Bead Candy quilts are stunning mini-quilts that are so much fun to make they should be illegal! They can be finished in practically no time. We will play with beads, including making fringe, buttons, ribbons, paint, feathers and a myriad of other commonly available materials is so fun and easy that ANY quilter will be dazzled. Finished quilt will be about 2½ x 3½ inches.


Paint Stick Magic Oct 10 - 1:00-4:00
Make elegant fabric with the look of airbrushing! Paint sticks applied to cotton or silk are simple, fun and permanent. This revealing hands-on workshop is for quilt, doll and clothing makers

Friday, August 13, 2010

The Greenwood District - Seattle

Took a mental health day this week, decided to go junk shopping. I love to look at the stuff and am always up for the opportunity to add to my vintage rhinestone jewelry collection. Spent way too long on line looking at the possibilities. Settled on the Greenwood District of Seattle. Here's what I found.

Cobblestone
They have many styles of used furniture from the 1920's to 1950's.








Antika offers a diverse selection of furniture ranging from Pine from the late 1800's to Danish Modern Teak from the 1950's to the 1970's.













Grab a quick cup of coffee at the Green Bean and continue shopping.


Labels is a locally owned and operated consignment shop, specializing in women's and children's clothing.






No treasures this time, but I'll keep looking!

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Setting 120+ Blocks

I love to make quilts all kinds of quilts. My friends and I decided to make each other big '0' birthday quilts. So now the question becomes what to do with 120+ 6" nine patch (or almost nine patch) blocks made with 30's fabrics. I know that not every sewing machine pieces with the same 1/4" so I had to think about how best to set the blocks in a pleasing way, and not make it to huge to easily machine quilt.

First I decided to use blue as the accent color. Increasing the size of every block to insure that they could easily be trimmed to the same 8" was my next decision. I planned to add simple sashing to some, to others I added triangles to set them on point. I needed a way to unify the other, mostly star, blocks so I made a few more. This worked well for the center of the quilt but used only 63 blocks!

A narrow pink sash to divide the center from the border and I was all ready to add the border. I know I prefer borders to be about the same size as the blocks. I added blue or white sash to every block placing the whites next to the quilt and the blues on the outside. Believe or not, there were still a few blocks left over ... they became the label!

Friday, August 6, 2010

Summer in Seattle

It's 80, and wonderful! I can't even think about being creative!


Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Eye Candy Quilt from NE


Thought you might like to see how I finished my eye candy quilt. It was a fun class and plan to do more in fact for local guild challenge will figure out something.

Thank you and hope you had uneventful trip home.
Janet Kugler
Quilter's Delight
Holdrege NE

Grapeview Art Fair




Summer week end mornings in Seattle are always beautiful, even if the sun isn't shinning. Spent a delightful morning at the small art fair in Grapeview WA.